No Longer Roman
by Awesomepossum328
Summary: He was a prince. A Roman prince. And after learning the extent of his father's cruelty, he makes a life-changing decision. And as he looked up to the stars that night, one thing was for sure: he was No Longer Roman. (Sequel to Roman)
1. Skeletons in the Closet

**Hello my lovely fanfiction readers. Welcome to the SEQUEL of Roman. So if you have not read Roman, none of this will make sense. Cheers. (I just saw Thor: The Dark World, it was amazing BTW, so I'm currently British for the next few days)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson series.**

**Jolly good, lads. (Or is that Irish? Chaps? Mates?... No. No. That's Australian... I'll get it eventually...)**

* * *

_One thing was definite._

_He was no longer Roman._

* * *

On the second day in the forest, a stray rabbit wondered into their camp, and Jason drove a sword through it.

If it had been four months prior, Piper would've taken the sword from the rabbit and stabbed Jason, but as the poor creature squealed out in pain, Piper's mouth started watering as she could smell it's flesh roasting over a warming fire. She was starving; it had been nearly three days since she'd last eaten. The Romans refused to feed her in prison, but she was still lasting better than Jason.

He was in a near panic. After never having to scramble for food or water his entire royal life, he wasn't quite sure what to do. It was true he had been bred for times of war and hardship, but he never actually had to face them. He was terrified of freezing in the night or dying of hunger; Piper was too, she was just better at hiding it than he was. She had never heard him complain of it, but from the look plastering his face, she knew he was moments from cracking. It wouldn't be long before he decided to eat _her. _

So, yes, she was thankful for the rabbit. Forget about being a vegetarian.

And she most certainly did forget after tearing into the wood-smoked flesh of the animal. Just as she was about to take another piece, she remembered her miserable walk to Rome and the pain of hunger she had experienced on her journey; all because she had been too foolish not to save a bit of the squirrel she had miraculously managed to kill.

She had tried to stop him from eating anymore, but neither could resist for more than a few minutes; Jason, for more than a few seconds. He promptly told her he didn't give a damn, and then tore off the rabbit's left leg, sinking his teeth into it's meat. Piper gave in too a few minutes later, promising herself they'd find more, but even then she knew that was a lie. It had been another two days since then, and food had evaded them.

Piper promised herself she'd wait until he woke up to rub it in that she'd told him so.

* * *

He awoke to find her not paying the slightest bit of attention.

She was whittling with a small torn off tree limb, about six inches long and an inch wide. There were a few other carved twigs, each shaven of it's bark and crafted to a point. With Katropis in her hand, she appeared to be hallowing it out, very attentive to each detail of it. With he cleared his throat to let her know he was awake, she became flustered and shoved her work behind her back.

"What's that?"

Piper cleared her throat. "It's nothing. Just an old hobby; it relieves a bit of tension for me."

And he didn't question her further, waving it off as another one of her silly little habits. He rolled onto his back, covering his eyes with the back of his hands to block the morning sun. After a few moments, he stood and walked over to their pile of firewood—if there was anything they had an abundance of in this hell of a forest, it was firewood. He picked up a few logs and threw them into the dead fire pit.

He reached to grasp the two stones they'd been using to ignite the flames, and began scratching them against each other to create sparks. He could feel Piper's eyes on him as he did this, and when the logs caught fire, she voiced his accusation.

"What are you doing?"

"Making a fire." He answered, plain and simple.

"Why?"

"I'm going to find food, and we need a fire to cook it."

Piper looked at him, doubtingly, "you actually think you can not only find, but _kill_ an animal?"

He put his hands on his hips, half-cockily, half-defensively. "I've done it before; you watched me do it a few days ago."

"I watched you stab an unsuspecting rabbit, that had luckily stumbled into our camp. That, Jason, was luck."

"That, Piper, was skill."

"Please." She said, walking past him to stomp out the small flame. "What skill?"

Jason looked at her in a mix of shock and anger. "You—you just put out my fire."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "You called that a fire?"

"Well, then, if you're so intelligent, how are we going to cook the food without a fire?" He asked, crossing him arms, much to sassily for a grown man.

Piper pulled her cloak from the forest floor, and tugged it over her head. "We aren't. We are going to go into town and eat like civilized people."

"How? We're fugitives."

"Honestly, Jason. Do you really think your father would let people know that his only son and heir has not only betrayed him, but evaded the _mighty _soldiers of Rome, taking Public Enemy Number One with him?"

Jason blinked. "No. No he wouldn't."

"Exactly."

"Even so, we don't have any money."

"Money?" Piper rolled her eyes. "I can get you money."

* * *

With a sway in her walk, and her hood lowered, Piper strutted her way through the town square.

She drew the eyes of both men and women, for a number of reasons, both hormone-driven, and jealousy-driven. When she spotted a man who was reasonably well groomed with a pouch a _denarii_ jiggling from his belt, she made a beeline towards him. With Jason's head lowered and shadowed by the darkness of an alley about twenty feet away to avoid attention from anyone, this one was all Piper.

She batted her eyes, and tapped the man on his shoulder with a seductive smile on her lips. He turned to her, and Piper nearly cringed. Of all the men she had to choose, she had selected one who was cross-eyed as a bat, thin-lipped, cursed with an extremely large nose with the beard from hell. He looked non-proportionate in every way possible; Piper could hear Jason stifling his laughs despite their distance and the noise of a busy town square.

"Hello."

Piper swallowed the vomit that she hadn't realized ventured into her mouth, and forced a smile. "Hi."

He ran a rough hand down her arm, causing the vomit Piper had successfully forced back down to come right back up. "How can I help you?"

She light a fire in her eyes to make the effect endearing, "I was hoping that a kind _handsome _man like yourself would have some money for a lost girl to use to get back to her family."

"Well." He chuckled, his hand going towards his pouch. "I might." Piper smiled, but it left as soon as it had come. "But, everything comes at a price."

He slithered an arm around her waist, drawing her in closer; Piper placed her palms against her chest, pushing away from him. His grin was suddenly gone, and wordlessly, Piper walked away; the man huffed, slightly disappointed, and left in the opposite direction. As Piper walked past Jason down the alley, she held up a hand against him, silencing his mockery.

"Not one word."

He chuckled. "Oh, I had more than one."

Piper gritted her teeth. "Don't test me."

He let out another chuckle, raising his hands in defense. "Whatever. Do you mind loaning me your cloak, so we don't get mobbed?"

"Why?"

"Because I have a plan of my own."

Piper drew in a heavy breath, removing the cloak, and handing it to him. He winced as he drew it around his shoulders; Piper had nearly forgotten about his wound. His tunic was still drench with blood, despite Piper finding a river that they'd washed they'd both bathed and washed their clothing in.

"Are you all right?" She asked, reaching out a hand, but not daring to touch him.

"I'm fine." He grunted, pulling the hood around his face. "Follow my lead."

Piper stifled a laugh as she trailed him. The cloak was way to small for him; barely ending around his knees. It was tight around his shoulders, and the green fabric didn't exactly compliment the rugged image he constantly tried to portray. She noticed his eyes catch on a red coin pouch secured to a man's waistline by nothing more than a knotted string. Jason tapped against his leg, nodding towards him; Piper cleared her throat to show she understood.

Making a loop around the square, Jason casually bumped the man's shoulder, muttering an apology, though all the man did was scold him loudly. As Jason continued to walk, he snatched the pouch from the man and palmed in to Piper, who tied it around her own waistband, claiming it as her own.

Both continued walking as if it had never happened.

* * *

They ate in silence.

Piper stared at him as he picked at his cheese, and aimlessly stuck his thumbnail into his apple, carving a drawing of lines into it. In the almost week they had unwillingly spent together, Piper still knew near to nothing about him. She cursed herself for not analyzing him sooner; she knew Jason, the backstabbing prince who dueled her in the arena, but she didn't know Jason, the man who saved her life.

She watched his body movements, committing his habits to her memory. He sat on the edge of his old wooden chair, ready to bolt the moment anything went wrong. He may have been eating his cheese, but his grip on his apple was tight, yet loose, as if he was ready to chunk it at someone if he couldn't get to his sword in time.

"What should we do?"

He looked up at her. "What?"

"We can't keep this up?"

"Why not?"

"We just can't keep living like this, especially with people still getting killed in the Colosseum. I have friends in there Jason, I can't just leave them there to die."

"Well then, what do you suggest we do?"

Piper said the only thing that came to mind. "We end it."

"What?"

"We end the Colosseum. We free everybody, and we put a stop to Jupiter's tyranny over them."

"You're right."

"Look, Jason, I know Jupiter's your father and stopping the Colosseum might shake his rule, and possibly threaten his life, but—wait." Piper paused, realizing what he had said. "What?"

"You're right."

* * *

It was late that night as Piper and Jason snuck near the bushes where Piper had hidden what felt like so long ago.

She swore colorfully beneath her breath; she hadn't been expecting ground patrol. She could only assume it was Jupiter being paranoid that there could be someone else like her, who could escape in the middle of the night. If she had been in the neutral zone with Jason, she would've socked him square in the nose; it was his fault the Romans even knew she'd gotten out.

"How are we getting in?" He whispered to her.

Piper shrugged. "I dunno." She ran to another set of bushes closer to the Colosseum. He perked up, almost voicing a questioning 'what?', but he followed her, nonetheless.

"What do you mean you don't know?" He said, slightly agitated that she would drag him out there, risking both their lives, without a plan.

"I don't" Piper ran to the next shrub.

He trailed her. "What does that mean?"

"I don't know how I can make it any clearer." She ran towards the open layout of the Colosseum, hiding behind a pillar.

He ran after her. "How could you not know? We're about to risk our lives for your friends here and I'd think you'd have a—"

"Look." Piper cut him off. "I got in and out of here once and nobody knew until you ratted me out." She wasn't sure, because it was quite dark, but she thought she saw him bow his head in regret. "Now if you want a plan: be quiet and let me think of one." She peered around the pillar, looking at the guards.

"Well hurry up and—"

"Got it!"

"Well, what is—"

Before Jason could finish his sentence, Piper shoved him from the pillar and into a passing guard. It knocked them both down, but each having been trained in a Roman battle school, they were quick on their wits and on their feet. The guard shook his head, as if clearing the fuzziness from impact as he squinted into the darkness, trying to make out the form that had just plowed through him.

The guard rubbed his eyes in disbelief. "Prince Jason?"

"Uh." Jason said, lamely. "No?"

The guard raised his sword. "You traitor!"

Jason drew his own sword, but held it warily. "Now just a minute..."

There were clearly two options here: flight or fight. Jason opened his mouth and drew in a breath to speak, then bolted. The guard let out a battle cry. _"For Rome!" _This caught the attention of the other ground patrol guards, and they too took off after Jason, wanting a piece of the excitement. In the span of thirty seconds, she had managed to clear an entire field of guards. She grinned and nodded to herself, satisfied with her work as she heard Jason's shouts fading away as he lead them far from Piper.

She crept along the shadows, in case a few lingering guards had bothered to be smart enough to stay and do their jobs. But none were that smart. Piper came to the entrance, and drew her woodwork that Jason had question her of that morning. She had been waiting for an opportunity to test it. It was a simple cylinder, designed for speed, strength, and distance. She grasped the red coin pouch she and Jason had stolen from the man in the town square, to ensure that it was still there.

She drew one of the thin sticks she had carved earlier from the pouch and placed it in the cylinder, keeping another in her hand. She was careful not to touch the stained end, for that'd would pretty much ruin her entire plan. With a heave, she pushed the stone topping off it's mount, listening to the door guards climb up the ladder and out into the yard to see what had repositioned their makeshift entrance.

Neither took notice of Piper as drew the barrel to her lips and blew, sinking one of her homemade darts into the neck of one guard. She quickly reloaded as the other guard turned his sword on her, blowing it into his chest. Both sunk towards the ground, allowing what Piper hoped to be sleep overtake them.

She smiled at the surprise that her blow darts had actually worked; honestly, she half-expected them not to. She jumped down into the prison she had called home for so many months, taking out guards as she ran down the halls. When she was positive each guard was unconscious, she disbanded a set of keys from a guard's waistband, and unlocked Leo's cell first.

He was asleep against all three mats—his, Piper's, and Beckondorf's. She noticed a sword cut against his cheek, but she felt lucky that was all he had received. She placed a hand softly against his shoulder, a shook him until he awoke. He blinked at her, as if unbelieving what he saw.

"Leo, it's me."

"Piper?" He rubbed his eyes.

"Yeah, it's me, Leo. Come on, we don't have much time."

"Didn't you die?" Piper could tell he was still half-asleep.

"Yeah, but I didn't like the underworld, so I came back."

"You can do that?"

Piper rolled her eyes, shoving the set of keys at him. "Start unlocking everybody's cell; we're getting out of here."

Leo yawned, but stood, saluting her. Now Piper wasn't sure if he was drunk or not. He stumbled out of the cell, and began unlocking the prisoner's, waking them up and telling them about the escape. Piper ran towards the exit, drawing her dagger as she went; she had kind of just abandoned Jason to about a dozen guards.

But as soon as she was above ground, she slammed into him at full speed. Piper groaned in pain, as did he, but both soon recovered at the sound of the prisoner's cries of joy; Piper just hoped no one heard them. Instead of explaining what he'd done to escape, he just knelt down at the guards.

"What'd you do to them?"

She held out the dart and the firing barrel, "it's what I was working on this morning. I found Nightshade berries while I was looking for firewood a few days ago. I kind of hoped we'd set the prisoners free, and this was my plan; I didn't know about the field guards, but you were there to take care of that."

He glared at her, but it was short lived. He picked up a hand of a guard, and released it, allowing it to fall back down. "Are they, you know, dead?"

Piper shook her head. "No. I don't think so. Nightshade berry juices aren't deadly when they're dry, I think." She wouldn't dare check for a pulse. "They should just be out for an hour or two."

There was a cry of happiness coming from the catacombs as the prisoners, lead by Leo, walked freely for the first time in ages. Everyone was laughing, and Piper didn't have the heart to shush them, but Jason did. Everyone, with the exception of Piper, stared at him, angrily as if they were planning to kill him already.

"Piper?" Leo asked through gritted teeth.

"What?"

"What's _he _doing here?" Leo said, as if he couldn't bare to even speak his name.

"Woah. Woah." Piper held up her hands, as if warding off the prisoners. "It's okay, everybody. He saved me, so in a way, he saved you people. He's a good person, and nothing like the emperor. He'll lead us to freedom."

That seemed good enough for Leo. "Well, if you trust him, I trust him." Leo smiled before leading the prisoners in a quiet huzzah. "Um." He said, turning back to Piper. "Now what?"

"Well, you're free to choose." Piper spoke, loud enough for everyone to hear her, but still quietly. "You can leave here and now and never come back; you can try to find and repair your old life. Or," Piper smiled, "you can join me and we can live freely!" The crowd cheered, but quieted at Piper's signal.

"You didn't kill any did you?" Piper asked in a small voice, as they led the pack of prisoners who had chosen to stay back to their camp.

Jason's eyebrows scrunched, confused. "No. Why?"

"Idle curiosity." Piper shrugged off his question, not admitting to him, she was still against killing.

* * *

There was almost a riot at two in the morning that night.

Word had gotten around that there was no food, limited water, and little shelter. Everyone was whispering amongst themselves, as if they were all forming alliances to take each other down. Piper could tell fights were about to begin over resources, and she climbed onto the old stump, with Leo on her left and Jason on her right.

"Everybody!" She shouted, but no one heard her, either that or they didn't care. "Hey—guys, come on—" In one last attempt, Piper screamed at the top of her lungs. "Quiet!"

Everybody went silent, and listened to her.

She took a deep breath. "Now I know that there's been some talk about what we're going to do for food, for water, for shelter, for everything. And I will answer honestly: I don't know yet, but none of you do either and fighting is not going to give us the solution. I know you're scared and I am too, but we can make it through this.

"None of you have any reason to trust me—I lied to each and every one of you. But I protected you, and that's what I'm going to do now. I'm your best bet at the moment, and I will do my best to fix this for all of us. We won't get captured! We'll run away and start our own Rome, where everyone lives in peace! Are you with me?!"

A rising cheer came up from the crowd, as Piper stepped down from the stump. Leo patted her on the back, and Jason gave an approving nod (which was probably the nicest thing he'd done for her in the past few days). Piper smiled to herself; in this world of 'what ifs' and 'I don't knows', one thing was certain.

All these people, they were no longer Roman.

* * *

**So? How's that for an opening chapter. A little over 3,700 words. Not bad. Not bad. I want to thank each and every one of you for a 456 review success on Roman! Let's see if we can beat that with this one! Happy Thanksgiving!**

**Read and Review!**

* * *

**You guys are such Awesome Possums! :oD**


	2. Of Mice and Men

**Hello all my lovely fanfiction readers, and welcome to the second chapter of No Longer quote below is one of my favorites, and I think it describes this chapter well. It is the quote that inspired "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck. I forget the author of the original poem, but I believe it was entitled, "To a Mouse". Anyways, I hope you all enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson series.**

**Thanks for 36 reviews on my first chapter! I can tell this is going to be good!**

* * *

_The best laid schemes __of Mice and Men_

_often go askew_

* * *

Piper walked with her hood up through the market, with Jason and Leo flanking her.

She attempted to ignore her hollow stomach as it begged her to be fed with a weak growl. During the first few days with limited food, her stomach had been a relentless tiger caged inside her body. It had loudly grunted and ordered nourishment, but Piper had nothing to appease it with; her body had learned this, and had nearly given up asking. More often than not she'd take the meager food she'd been given and offer it to a young boy or an aging man, always insisting that she wasn't hungry and that they'd need it more than she did.

It was always bogus, but a starving belly was the only weakness of men besides lust, and they'd accept her gift without question. Jason would always narrow his eyes at her as would Leo, if he wasn't busy shoving his food into his face. The first few times she'd done it, Jason would hold out a bit of his small meal to her, but she'd always refuse. Piper already knew that Jason was struggling with hunger as it was, having been a prince that never had to worry about food.

He'd always protest that he was fine, but the way he'd shake slightly after having to skip a meal and twiddle his fingers nervously would give him away. Everyone else was used to it, and the pain it brought; Piper had to adjust slightly after living with the gladiators for a few weeks and constantly having food, but it wasn't a difficult transfer. But even with the familiar feeling of an empty stomach could protect against hunger for long, and eventually everyone would die.

That is why Piper, Leo, and Jason were at the market, when each were known fugitives; they needed to find food. Whether they stole it or found it in a trash heap, their people were sick and malnourished, and they were going to find something to eat for everyone. All two hundred and some odd of them. As they walked through the crowded market square, Piper couldn't help but listen in on conversations.

She had no doubt that world had spread of the prisoners' escape, and it would be known that she and Jason had helped—or at least Jason, no one had actually seen Piper; she'd attacked everyone from behind with a dart gun. However, no one was talking of a prison escape, Colosseum-related or otherwise. It kind of made Piper a little edgy in her walk, but she didn't know how Jupiter could hide it from anyone, especially with the fights occurring that afternoon.

"The fights are going to be good today."

Piper froze, causing Jason and Leo to stumble into her. They both were about to demand an explanation from her, but with a silencing hand, Piper turned to listen.

"I'll say they will be, with the Emperor announcing a surprise for the duelers."

Piper's eyebrows furrowed as she listened to the two men converse. Surprise?

"It's a shame that Pericles won't be fighting anymore, did you here that he—I mean, _she_," The man wiggled an eyebrow at his friend, sharing a quick laugh over his slip-up, "was executed?"

Piper's eyes widened. But she was right here, alive and well—actually she was starving, but she was alive.

"A shame indeed, I wish the Emperor had kept her." Piper couldn't help but grin; she had a fan. "Do you think he would've forced her to fight naked if we started a petition?" And it was gone.

"Piper?" Leo hissed into her ear. Piper shushed him and tried hear their words, but as they walked away, Piper didn't follow in fear of starting a suspicion. "Piper?" Leo said again, slightly louder.

"What?" Piper snapped, turning to him.

"What was that all about?"

Piper jerked her head back to the two men, as they disappeared into the crowd.

"Those men," she nodded after them, "they were talking about the fights, about how they were going to be good today."

"That's impossible." Jason interjected. "There are no tributes left to duel."

"I know." Piper said, through gritted teeth. "They also said something about a surprise Jupiter had for the tributes."

"Let's check it out." Jason suggested, following Piper's line of vision, where the two men had been standing. "Just to be safe."

Piper nodded. Just to be safe.

* * *

They had front row seats—which were the worst seats possible.

An up-close view of someone being beheaded and more often than not, the head was thrown into the crowd according to Jason, who had been attending matches since he was a small boy. Piper was currently terrified of having a dead skull being tossed into her lap. She shuddered at the thought and consider switching places with Leo, who had luckily claimed the last seat in the row above Piper and Jason, but with her luck, a gladiator would throw it with extra force and it would land in her lap anyways.

Piper was positive she was the only woman in attendance, as only men were allowed to witness the bloody excitement of other men fighting to the death. With mud once again smeared on her face, and the cloak hiding her hair, she'd be taken for a young boy who'd just spent his bread money to get the worst seat in the house. With Jason next to her, a stolen cloak hiding his own recognizable features, she was nervous to see what was to come. Honestly, she prayed Jupiter would just come out and explain that all the tributes had escaped, and that would be his big surprise.

Unfortunately, Piper was never one to have good luck.

An entire new group of starved peasants entered the arena, five being pushed ahead of the others. Piper's fists clenched as Jason and Leo turned to look at her with a worried look in their eyes. She'd risked not only her neck, but Jason's neck to save the tributes only to have Jupiter replace them within the week. Actually, judging by their sunken cheeks and hallowed eyes, he'd managed to replace them overnight.

Piper's, along with every other head in the arena, turned to look at the opposite side of the arena, where the gladiators would enter. The largely grouped amount of motion caused a loud swish to be heard, almost as if they had all turned a book page over at the same time. The audience waited and waited, but the gladiators never showed and the first prisoner was shoved forward without an opponent to meet him.

When Jupiter entered his Emperor's viewing box, with only Percy at his side; Piper didn't turn her head until he spoke. She was too busy staring at the gladiators entrance, wondering where her friends were. Where was Malcolm? Where was Nico? Where was Will? What had Jupiter done to them?

"My people!" Jupiter shouted to gain everyone's attention. "Let the battle begin!"

Despite their distance apart from each other, Piper could see a regretful glint in Percy's eyes, almost as if he were about to burst into tears. Her attention was pulled from Percy to the east gate; along with the west gate, Piper had never seen it be opened and judging by the silence from the crowd, they hadn't either. At first, nothing happened, but then a low growl emerged from the darkness of the entrance.

The gates creaked opened and the growl grew larger in sound as the tribute, a young boy no older than Piper herself, leaped for the weapon's table, seizing a dull spear missing half it's long hilt. As the boy prepared to protect himself, the creature stalked out as the crowd gasped in fear, even from their seats. The beast stayed low to the ground, baring it's teeth, stained pink from it's last meal. It's eyes were yellowed as it focused on the young boy, waiting for the precise moment to attack; Piper's heart nearly stopped as the beast leapt for the boy's neck.

Jupiter was no longer using men. He was using lions.

* * *

Piper closed her eyes.

But then she opened them again, understanding why citizens actually attended these events: there was too much action and danger to look away. She remained quiet as the crowd cheered when the boy dove from the lion's pounce at the last moment, his survival instincts kicking in. She could see the fear and panic in the boy's eyes, and it was painted on his face; he was terrified.

Piper would be too; she had never fought a lion before, but she imagined that it wasn't an easy opponent to defeat. As Piper watched the lion hunt it's prey, she started to memorize it's motion and fighting style. As sick as it sounded, Piper was a curious being and wanted to know everything she could, just on a slight chance she ever came face-to-face with one.

Her pupils followed the cat, watching the muscles in it's back flex and release just from walking. She was entranced with the way it's shoulder blades would move as it shifted from side to side. And it's eyes—they were Roman: merciless and bloodthirsty. They locked onto the boy and the lion was hungry, not necessarily to eat, but to kill. The animal snarled, giving both Piper and boy a good look at it's sharpened canines.

The way it's teeth curled in slightly and the front set of four, two on bottom and two on top, looked deadly. Piper knew that's how the animal would kill, by latching onto it's the poor boy until he died. It's tongue licked at it's lip, growing impatient for the tribute to make the first move of attack. The lion let out a low growl that grew into a roar as it padded about the arena, the boy shakily keeping his distance.

The lion looked at the boy, slightly calmer than it had been a few moments ago, it became suddenly aware of how useless this fight would be. It realized how little meat the boy carried, and that there could be possible injury from the spear in the boy's hands. It turns back to the gate of which it entered, standing in front of it as if waiting for it to open again and let him back inside.

The Romans, however, had another idea. From the first row of the Colosseum, close to the lion's gate, stood a Roman guard with a long whip in his grip. Just as the boy turned away, thinking his life was safe, the soldier lashed out the whip, slashing the lion. The strike left a red welt across it's backside, and to say it angered the lion would be an understatement.

Unsure of where the blow came from, the lion jerked around, searching for the culprit. It's eyes settled on the tribute, who has his back turned to the beast and even though the lion knew it would be impossible for the boy to have struck, it still stalks towards him. No one from the crowd warns the unsuspecting tribute as the lion jumps. The boy was crushed under it's weight, as he struggled get the near six-hundred pound cat off him.

But it was no use, as the lion forced him from his knees to his stomach, the tribute was torn apart. The vicious animal tore the flesh from his body, and Jupiter relished in the still living boy's screams. He flailed wildly, but as Piper had predicted, the lion latched his sharpened jaws onto the boy's neck and did not let go until he stilled. The gate opened and the lion took notice, dragging it's kill across the arena and back into it's den.

Piper stood from her seat, much to the displeasure of those sitting behind her, and quickly walked out of the Colosseum as another tribute was pushed forward. She had no doubt that another exotic animal would be sent out to kill it, perhaps a tiger or a hyena, and she most certainly did not want to watch that again. As Piper left, Jason and Leo both took notice and followed her out.

When she had made it to the bushes, where she and Jason had hid only a week prior, the former prince caught up to her and grabbed her arm. Piper could hear Leo far behind, even over the roar of the crowd; his breath was heavy, as Leo was never really in shape—that and he was starving to death. She and Jason were alone.

"Hey." His voice was soft and gentle. "You okay?"

"I thought by freeing all the tributes, I'd end the Colosseum," her eyebrows scrunched as disgust was written on her facial features, "but Jupiter just replaced all of them in less than a week."

"Hey." He awkwardly pulled her into his arms. "It'll be okay."

"There were lions, Jason!" She pushed him away, abruptly. "I damned all those people!"

"And you saved hundreds more!" He argued back; Piper was thankful for the loud cheers of the crowd to drown out their argument. "Piper, my father is relentless," she noted he still referred to Jupiter as his father, "and he will do anything to convince people he's in control!"

Right then and there, Piper had an epiphany. "But what if he wasn't?"

Jason suddenly dropped his hardened stare for a curious glint in his eyes. "What are you saying?"

"Look," Piper began to explain, "freeing the tributes only cured a small part of the problem, but if we were to take out the disease at it's source, we could fix everything!"

"Piper," Jason chuckled, almost in a depressed manor, "I highly doubt my father would just let you take his throne from him."

"I know."

"In fact," Jason said, jokingly, as if he had a crazed idea, "you'd probably have to kill him just to—"

Jason froze.

* * *

**Dun. Dun. Dun. Dunnnnnn. **

**So? Can she do it? Can she kill Jupiter? Will Jason even let her? Will Leo ever get in shape? Find out, next week, on No Longer Roman.**

**...So? That's how I'd do a TV preview for this story. Anyways, do you think she has the guts to do it? This chapter was 2,842 words, which is about 1,000 off my last chapter, but oh well... Read and Review! I want to reach 65 reviews! And this is only the second chapter! Did you know I average 30 reviews per chapter, even during Roman? So... that's kind of the most I've ever averaged... which is terrifying... O_o**

**Writer's Advice: Outlines**

**This was requested by a reviewer, and I figured, why not advice everyone all at once?...**

**The best advice I could give another writer is to be confident in yourself, but also to remember the rules of grammar and structure. I advise to have outlines, whether you do lists or webs, or whatever. Have an outline! If I didn't have an outline, I'd be a mess. I always write a vague outline of events I want to occur in a certain chapter, and when I feel that I could leave a cliffhanger here and still end the chapter with a considerable amount of length, then I'm all good.**

**Know what you want in your story first and foremost, and always have your game plan. Honestly, without my outlines, I'd suck at writing. Well... maybe not suck... in case you didn't know, I wrote an improved Tratie story called Faking It. It was the first story I had ever written, and I didn't know anything about outlines. It only got 133 reviews, which isn't bad, but compare it to Roman, which was outlined, and it had 457 reviews... Yeah... I'm gonna stick with my outlining... **

**Read and Review!**

* * *

**You guys are such Awesome Possums! :oD**


	3. My Mother's Eyes

**Hello my lovelies! Thanks so much for all the support and not pressuring me to update during finals. Thanks even more for 70 reviews, and all your favorites and follows, especially with only two chapters out! :)**

**So. I have been asked about other PJO characters and if they'll come in. Thalia is coming (just to create drama for Jason... muhahahaha) and Rachel is coming. Percy is going to play a much bigger role than he has right now, which you'll start to see within the next few chapters. We'll get more of Piper's past and a bit of Jason's past. **

**I'm not sure about Annabeth right now. I know you guys love her and I do to, but I just can't find anywhere to sneak her in. If she does make it, she probably won't play a major role. I want this story to focus on Jasper, but don't worry, after I'm done with this series (I haven't decided if I'm doing a third or not), I will be starting a Percabeth story. And I've already decided on plot and title... :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson series. **

**Guys. It's about to heat up. Romance. Jealousy. Lies. Confusion. Betrayal. Get ready.**

* * *

Piper was five when her father took her to visit her mother's grave.

It was the first either of them had been there since the funeral, but with Piper being a newborn, she didn't remember. She didn't like it very much. The village graveyard was located on the outskirts of town and with thin sandals on rocky soil, Piper's feet were hurting ten steps down the road. But she didn't say anything about it, for she could sense a dark cloud of sadness set over her father, and whining about something so meaningless probably wouldn't help him feel better.

When they reached the graveyard, Piper couldn't help but frown. There were no headstones, as there would've been for upper class cemeteries. Each grave was marked by a small single stone, each a specific color and shape, and with the wind constantly blowing in from the sea, they would never actually know if they were actually standing at her mother's grave. Though Tristan had memorized the stone, he had been grieving the last time he set foot on the grave plots, only remembering the tears as he held his newborn child and not his wife's resting place.

The stones could've been easily moved in the natural shifting of the earth, or mud when it rained, but Tristan wasn't thinking about that. He just held tight to Piper's held, and led her about the rocks, searching for his wife's. About five minutes in, they had found it, and both of them just stared at it as if it contained the very essence that held their lives together. But no. That should be about six feet down.

Piper placed three wild daisies near the stone, knowing they'd be gone with the breeze the next day. It was silent after that, not a single crow cawed in the fall sunset. Piper glanced up at her father, his eyes were glassed over and filled with sadness, too much sadness for any soul to bear. She looked back to the stone. Her mother. How could you miss someone you never knew?

Piper didn't know how, but she did. She shared the unspoken grief with her father, despite her young age, she was mourning an attachment to a woman she didn't remember. She looked back up at her father, and he stared back down at her, as if trying to wordlessly tell her that it would be all right. Piper released his hand and walked back up the hill to the road. She turned around to see that he hadn't moved and that was all right; he was entitled to a little alone time.

Piper remembered the stone, wondering what hers would look like one day. People didn't live very long in her village, demonstrated by the numerous number of stones in the field, and Tristan was getting on up into the years when many were starting to grow ill. She had seen his eyes as he looked upon her mother's stone, the pure longing to have her back, and it made Piper curious.

But honestly, Piper was willing to bet that he couldn't wait to see her eyes again.

* * *

Piper remembered the feeling standing over her mother's grave so long ago, and it was similar to what she was feeling now.

Pain. Regret. Loss. Sorrow. Empty. All those tributes in that arena, damned to be eaten by lions; even Piper would've preferred having her head thrown into the crowd. And it was all her fault. She and Jason were in a stand-off of silence, neither daring to say a word in fear of being smacked by the other. Leo caught up nearly a minute later, and bent over against his knees, holding up one finger to ask for a moment to recover. After a few seconds, give or take a couple of minutes, Leo stood back up straight.

Even Leo could tell there was something off between the two of them, most likely because Piper had just suggested murdering his father, but from the look on Jason's face it was more like suggesting a genocide—which is probably what would come with Jupiter's death. Out of the corner of her eye, Piper could see Leo looking between them as if deciding what to do.

He was cautious as he spoke. "Is everything all right?"

He automatically receded slightly, shrinking back into his shoulders. She and Jason had both been trained by the greatest teacher in centuries, and they were both seething with anger. It was probably best to not try them any further. Neither opened their mouths to respond, as if just challenging the other to speak first and break the dead quiet.

He didn't take his eyes off Piper, but Jason caved first, "everything's fine, Leo. I'll explain later."

With that, he tore his eyes from her and took his leave back to their forest camp of prisoners. Piper let out a long, angry breath of air through her nose, to signal her fury. Jason either didn't notice or didn't care, but Leo did and he gestured her forward. He did not want her angry and walking behind him with a knife. It wasn't that Piper couldn't understand why Jason was upset, as Piper had nearly dissolved into nothing when she became an orphan at the hands of Luke, but the emperor was nothing like Tristan.

And though Jupiter probably deserved it, he was still Jason's father.

* * *

Piper was nearly murdered by Nico the next morning.

He came out of nowhere and attacked in the dark early hours in which she had gone in search of Hunkleberry roots before they closed up in the morning light. He'd snuck up on her with his sword drawn and it was by sheer luck that Piper had heard his footsteps before he skewered her. After a brief swordfight, she'd recognized his fighting style and had spoken his name.

He'd squinted into the darkness and said her name in a curious tone, he'd lifted her into the air and hugged his sister's friend before promptly asking her how in the hell she was alive. It fair to ask such a question as he, along with the rest of Rome, had probably been told she'd been executed. As quickly as she could, she gave him a quick explanation of her escape and she watched him slightly grin at the mention of his old friend, Jason.

Before long she had brought up Malcolm and he grabbed her by the arm and drug her through to woods. They came upon a makeshift camp much like Piper's own camp, except a little less... populated. Around a freshly extinguished campfire sat Malcolm and surprisingly Will. They seemed to be in a scattered conversation, that was pointless and most likely started to pass time.

As soon as Nico arrived, Malcolm stood, "Nico, did you find any firewo—" Then he saw Piper and froze.

"Nooo," Nico prolonged the word, shifting back and forth on his feet, "but I found something else."

"Piper?" Malcolm's eyes were wide as if he was seeing a ghost.

She nodded, unsure what to say. He surged forward and hugged her, as if he were greeting a long lost sister. Will stood, but he didn't make any motion to greet her. It was good to her friends again, but there was something puzzling her and she voiced it as soon as Malcolm released her.

"Why are all of you all the way out here?"

Malcolm sat back down. "You know about the lions?" She nodded and he chuckled almost sadly. "That's why we're out here. Jupiter doesn't need warrior to fight if he's got lions to tear the tributes apart."

"They set you free?" Piper asked, amazed.

"More like evicted us at sword point." Will scoffed.

"Oh." Piper said, quietly. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Malcolm interrupted, "we needed to get out of there anyways, and we're not doing too bad on our own." He gestured to half a dead rabbit carcass and a dead mouse. Each had a puncture near a vital area, but it didn't seem like a stab wound.

Piper furrowed her eyebrows, "how did you kill them?"

"I stole these on the way out." Will picked up a carved wooden bow from the ground along with a quiver full of arrows. "Now that I couldn't have crafted on myself, but these things take time and we could've starved before then, so—"

"Wait." Piper interrupted. "You hunted and killed those animals?" Will nodded and Piper smiled. "Do you think you could hunt for a few more people?"

"A few more?" Will raised an eyebrow. "Sure. Why?"

* * *

"That is not a few."

Will's face was blank of all emotion as he stared upon the two hundred freed prisoners from atop a small hill perch overlooking the camp. Malcolm and Nico stood wide-eyed and awkward next to them. Malcolm swallowed quite fearfully, never taking his hand from the sword resting at his hip. Nico acted quite similar to Macolm, but his hand merely lingered near his sword instead of fully resting on the hilt.

"Mother of—where did you find all of them?" Nico asked under his breath, though everyone heard him.

"They were all prisoners of the Colosseum. We set them free, and now we're all struggling to survive."

"That is not a few." Will repeated, still in shock.

Nico's hand went to his sword, ready to draw it along with Malcolm, and despite his shock, Will's grip tightened on his bow. All three tensed as if ready for a fight and Piper felt like an absolute idiot. Though she thought she found the perfect solution to the starvation problem, but she had forgotten that these three were former gladiators and they had been bred to kill everyone present, with the exception of Jason.

"You don't have do it alone." Piper gave them a reassuring smile, as if to tell them that everyone was too hungry to really put up a fight. "Take whoever you want and teach them to hunt. Craft bows. Steal swords. Do whatever you have to do; we have sick and we have staving we need help."

Nico stepped forward, taking the bow from Will and gave it to Malcolm, "Malcolm's decent enough with a bow; we'll take some out hunting. Will's a good healer, and if you have sick, he'll be the best for the job."

"Do you mind I if I take a few to find some healing plants?" Will asked, as he removed the quiver from his back and tossed it at Malcolm, who caught it with ease.

Piper nodded. "You're welcome to anyone who is willing to go."

Piper lead the group down the slope and into the camp. Everyone become increasingly aware of their presence, knowing exactly who they were. She walked to where Leo and Jason were sitting, and the three former gladiators followed, and all eyes followed them as the entire camp went silent. Leo and Jason were in a whispered conversation, not having taken notice of the newcomers, but unconsciously quieting their tones as sound left the area.

Jason was first to take notice, and he stood, shaking hands with his old battle schoolmates. "Malcolm. Nico." He offered his hand to introduce himself to Will, who had not learned from Chiron when the others had. "I'm Jason."

"Will."

After a few moments of silence and a brief explanation from Piper, Malcolm, Nico, and Will left after choosing groups left to find supplies, as they had promised Piper. Each chose a few of the healthier prisoners, and went into the woods without another word. The remaining trio looked after where they had walked into the woods.

"Well." Leo broke the silence. "It's not good, but its getting better."

* * *

Later that night, Piper sat with her legs crossed atop the hill where she and the former gladiators had stood merely hours before.

She took deep breaths with her hands folded in her lap, meditating. With a small fire, replacing candles, but the slight heat on her face provided the same comfort. She had often heard stories of people meditating to relax or to even hear the voices of the gods, giving advice, but it wasn't helping. The Olympians were silent and she was as stressed as ever.

She heard footsteps behind her and judging by their heaviness against the ground, she could tell it was Malcolm. He came up around her, and sat down next to her, crossing her legs in a similar fashion to her. For a moment, he allowed the silence and allowed her to think and relax in the quiet, before he broke it.

"You know we can't keep living like this."

Piper's eyes remained closed. "I know."

"What are we going to do?"

Piper opened her mouth to speak.

* * *

**Okay. Done and done. 2,500 words. I hope you all enjoyed. Sorry for all grammar and spelling issues. Stay tuned and just in case I don't update before then, Merry Christmas. And to others: Happy Hanukkah. :) Or if there's some other religious or not holiday celebrated during this time, and if you celebrate, I hope you have a very lovely one. I love all of you, and I am very thankful for your support and love. I hope all you have a very Happy Holiday and all that jazz.**

**Read and Review!**

* * *

**Have a very Merry Christmas, or a very Happy Hanukkah, my Awesome Possums! :)**


	4. Five Denarii

**HELLO! I hope you all had a very lovely Christmas or Hannukah or anything you celebrate. It's New Years Eve, which I hope you all have an excellent 2014. I'm just going to hang out with some friends and have a good time. And I have some good news: ANNABETH IS IN! I found a place and she's in. It's not the biggest role there ever was, but it's a role. AND THAT MEANS PERCABETH! While it's going to be mainly focused around Jasper, you guys are going to get some Percabeth really soon. I think around chapter six, and as I was outlining that chapter, I was fanning myself. **

**Not because it was hot or anything, but because there was so much tension. It's like Piper and Jason are right now. They just sort of stare at each other and you, as the reader, are just all like, "KISS ALREADY!" There's just so much sexual tension that it frustrates even me, and I'm the one writing it...**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson series.**

**Now, my readers, Welcome to the Jungle.**

* * *

Piper closed her mouth.

"What?" Malcolm raised an eyebrow at her, knowing that she had some form of an idea.

"Nothing." Piper half-heartedly chuckled, shaking her head. "It's crazy."

"No. What is it?"

Piper lifted her knees slightly and turned herself around to face him. "Do you realize that if Jupiter weren't in power, there'd be no Colosseum?" She asked, looking up at him. "There's no use in breaking out another set of prisoners; Jupiter would just replace them and then we'd be at square one again—with more people starving. But if we were to put an end to everything, everyone could be free."

"How?"

"I don't know." Piper admitted.

"To force Jupiter from his throne, we'd have to conquer Rome and that means war, Piper. And war requires an army. An army which we don't have."

"We have freed Colosseum prisoners who hate Jupiter with a passion."

Malcolm looked at her with a glint of sarcasm in his eyes, "you're really going to try to train two hundred starving people to fight against thousands of Roman soldiers who've trained since they were infants?"

"Yes."

Malcolm scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Even if you did manage to train them, we'd die from natural causes before the Romans even pointed a sword at as. We have no weapons, no resources."

"Not yet."

Malcolm opened his mouth to respond with something witty until he realized what she'd said. "What?"

"Not yet."

* * *

Jason had been told that he was ten years of age when his mother died, but he never knew for sure.

She was rarely around, or at least for his eyes to see. She'd be locked away in her chambers or her workroom, or somewhere else Jason couldn't get to. Yes, he'd had many nurses that had cared for him as a mother would, but they could never replace her, despite always being at his beck and call. In fact, if Jason had a denarii for every time he'd actually seen his mother on a casual occasion, he'd have eight coins, at the most.

That's all he had of her, eight memories, and they were fuzzy at best. The rare hug. A kind smile. A warm hand. A comforting voice. And saddened eyes. Okay. Five. He'd have five denarii. Saddened eyes and then nothing. Her eyes, blue like his (that he remembered), had been bright and happy until around his eighth birthday, then they'd dulled, especially when his father was around.

There had been rumors roaming the palace halls that they weren't even married, or even in love, but Jason refused to believe it, as any child in his place would. Around his ninth birthday, his opinion of his father started to change. He started attending the Colosseum, on the rare chance that his mother might attend. Jupiter required his wife to come to the arena at least once a year, and that she did. Only once. But she'd never say when that once would be.

She'd sit next to Jupiter's right like she was supposed to, with Jason to her right in a smaller throne fit for the young prince. She lean off to the right arm rest, with one seemingly aggravated hand supporting her head. Her eyes were closed for most of the matches, almost as if she didn't want to see the fights, but that was impossible. She was Roman. Romans were hardened and brave, or so Jason's tutors had taught him. Petty mercy was for the Greeks. _Weak Greeks. _Or so his tutors had taught him.

_"Mother? What's wrong?" _He'd ask her.

She'd smile softly, and say, _"nothing dear, just a headache"_

Kind smile. Comforting voice.

But the way she'd look at Jupiter while they sat in those two thrones would give her away every time; like he was a murderer. In the two times he'd actually seen her attend the fights, her expression was always the same. That's when he started believing the rumors.

Before long, his tenth birthday had come along. A sword from his father. And a stormy gray stallion from his mother, but that wasn't her real gift to him. The hand on his shoulder and the embrace she'd given him when she presented it to him was the real present.

Warm hand. Rare hug.

She looked at him the entire day, just staring, as if trying to memorize him. Whenever he'd glance at her questionably, she'd just give him her not-so-famous smile with her tired eyes sparkling the best they could. That night, he had been walking to chambers for the night, when he'd notice her private workroom door was ajar. He glanced inside before entering to find her sitting by a lit fire, hand-sewing a random piece of cloth that appeared to be turning into nothing in particular.

_"Mother?"_

She'd dropped her sewing, and the crown on her head had shifted. She looked back at him, relieved to see that it was only her son. She gave him the smile, and adjusted her crown properly and picked her work back up. She seemed to sew with a hasty fury, as if she couldn't wait to be finished with it. He had come up next to her and climbed onto the sofa next to her.

_"What's wrong?"_ He asked her.

She put her hand to her forehead, her pupils were wispy, _"Nothing dear, just a headache."_

Saddened eyes.

She was dead the next morning; the royal physician diagnosing it as an alcohol overdose. Jason had run down the hall to his parents' chambers to find his father standing over her body with a slight smile on his face. Jason blinked and it was gone. Jupiter took notice of his son and ordered his nurses to take him from the room, saying a young child shouldn't see such a thing.

He remembered the funeral as black and rainy, he stared as the coffin was lowered in the ground. Her death was proclaimed by sickness; no one wanted the queen's reputation to be soiled by having it known that she had drank too much. Or so his tutors had told him. Now that he thought about, Jupiter was only trying to save his own reputation. His mother. Six feet down. The thought was hard to think about.

He barely saw her. He barely knew her. He had six nurses to take her place. He had little memory of her, but he still longed for her everyday. Eventually, her memory had been suppressed by rules of battle and war strategies. But he never forgot his five denarii, but he'd give anything to have six or seven or by some miracle, eight.

He stood at her grave the day before the execution of Pericles, the girl he'd condemned to death, for the first time in seven years. He'd been so lost and had cried like he did when he was young, though he'd never admit it. He'd dropped to his knees and leaned against her gravestone, as if trying to feel her presence once more. One more warm hand on his shoulder. One more kind smile just for him. Anything. There isn't a day that went by when he didn't want her back, even if he would be ignored as he had been as a child. It was true. The hardened, brave prince of Rome missed his mother, though many would call that a lie.

For how could you miss someone you never knew?

* * *

"You're going to get us all killed."

Leo's voice had a serious tone in it, which was rare for him, as they all sat in a semi-circle eating their small rations from what the hunters, led by Malcolm, Nico, and occasionally Will, had managed to kill that day. Which was three squirrels and half a rabbit, that had already been killed, gnawed on, and left by a pack of wolves. As the six of them sat in a circle, discussing what to do about the hunger issue, Piper had suggested her idea.

"Not all of us." Piper retorted. "Only Jason, Malcolm, Nico, Will, and me."

"What about me?" Leo interjected.

"You're not trained Leo." Piper sounded firm on her decision to leave him out. "These men had a minimum of twelve years—" she paused, looking to Jason for confirmation of the number of years of training required to serve in the Roman Imperial Guard, the group that guarded the Roman palace. He nodded. "Twelve years. That's twelve years you don't have."

"You've had one day!" Leo argued.

"That's one more day than you've had!"

"Piper." Leo said as he held up his hands, imitating a balance scale. "One day," he shook his left hand, "versus twelve years." He shook his right hand. He spent a good moment testing the invisible weight of the two options, eliciting an eye roll from both Piper and Jason before the right hand came out victorious. "No offense, Pipes," he said, not noticing her bare wince at the name, "twelve years squashes one day."

"I've beaten plenty of people before!"

"Yeah! Him!" Leo pointed at Will. "Even I could beat him!"

Will glared at Leo, reaching for the bow slung across his back. "Why don't we test that theory." Leo shrank back.

"Put it away, Will." Piper said plainly, and with a grumble Will did as he was told. "I've beaten both Roman high generals," though she refused to name either said generals, both for different reasons, "and I don't know how many times I've beaten Jason, I think I've got it handled."

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Jason with a wary look on his face.

"What's wrong, Jason?" She asked.

Jason took a moment to answer. "Leo may be right. Percy and Luke definitely had a longer time than twelve years to train, but you caught Luke off guard and Percy has a soul."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "The raid was my idea, Jason, I'm going whether you like it or not."

She said it with such a tone of authority that it put both Jason and Leo in their place.

* * *

"Okay. This is where the storage rooms are."

Jason drew a diagram of the Roman palace with a stick in the dirt, pointing to several small stones he'd set out to symbolize their hit points. It was a little vague, as Jason was no artist, but it held the main point of the plan, so it would have to do. Besides, Jason would be leading them through the palace anyways and he knew his way around from bored walks around the property during his youth.

"We'll enter through here—there aren't a lot of guards patrolling this area because this wall is covered in thorned ivy vines, so it'd be harder to break in through here. But I know about a window, close to the ground, behind the ivy that's already broken in, and we can get in through there. It'll be tough to get all of us in without the guards noticing, but I think we can do it." Jason drew an _x_ in the dirt where the window was.

"We'll leave Leo behind as a look out. We'll be in and out, twenty minutes top, and we'll leave through the servant's entrance. Everybody got it?"

"Jason?"

"What, Leo?"

"How strong would you say the ivy is?"

Jason looked at him curiously. "I don't know, Leo. I'd say it's fairly strong. As kids, Percy, Luke, and I would take dares to see who could climb the highest. I think Percy won, but I was close and Lu—and oh, what does it matter, anyways?!" Jason threw his hands up in childish frustration.

"Because." Leo said, taking the stick from Jason and wiping away the dirt where Jason had drawn the _x_. "I have a better idea."

* * *

They came in from above.

At Leo's command, each had climbed up a separate piece of ivy, doing their best to ignore the cuts it left on their hands. Upon reaching the top, each wiped their hands again their tunics in an attempt to stop the bleeding. They placed pressure against their hands by pressing them to their upper legs, but to no avail. All wordlessly agreed to ignore it the best they could and to continue on.

Leo squinted in the night, turning to Jason. "Where is it?" He whispered.

Jason's eyes scanned the roof for a moment. "There!" He whispered back, jogging over to a trapdoor in the roof, staying low to the ground.

The others followed him, as he ran to an old childhood memory. The door was used by maids for quick-drying clothes in the sun, or at least it used to be. Once the staff had learned it caused color to fade from the clothing, they had turned back to leaving clothing by the fireplace, despite it being a hazard. Jason had, many a time, followed his nurses up the staircase leading to it, though he wasn't supposed to.

He loved the feeling of the warm sun on his face, especially when he was rarely allowed outside the palace as a younger child. But it was a detail that he remembered, and had relayed to Leo during a casual conversation over lunch, that had formulated this plan. In order to get to the trapdoor, one would have to walk straight through one of ten storage rooms. It was the perfect entrance point, and Jason was glad Leo hadn't forgotten about it.

Jason drew his sword and jiggled it around the rain-rusted lock, until it snapped open, and with the help of Nico, Jason heaved it open. Motion for the others to enter before him as he looked about the roof, making sure they hadn't stirred attention. Piper went down first, feeling her way along the dark walls until she hit a door. She grasped the knob and attempted to turn it, but it refused to budge.

"Jason." She rasped out. "The door's locked."

Jason swore under his breath, but due to the silence in the blackness, everyone heard him. He should've known. The staircase and trapdoor had been out of use for years, he should've guessed that the door would be locked. Just as Jason was about to move forward in an attempt to cut through it, Leo stepped forward and it a matter of seconds, drew the knife he'd borrowed from Malcolm and took apart the door knob and it's lock.

"Leo? How did you—" Piper started to say, but Leo stopped her.

"Never mind that, just go!" He hissed.

Malcolm, Nico, Jason, Will, and Piper ran past him and into the first room, feeling around for anything they eat, wear, or fight with. It was obvious the first room was filled with clothing sealed up in cloth sacks after a few moments of searching. Each grabbed a sack and continued onto the next room with Leo taking a left turn instead of a right, and as Jason had told him the hallway leading into the storage room hallway was lit, but empty, and it was Leo's job to stand guard until Jason came for him to join the others at the servant's exit of the other end of the storage room hall.

The second room contained food. The third contain bows each with a quiver of arrows. The fourth contained swords. The fifth contained wine and ale, which Piper insisted they skip over. The sixth contained more food, and as they were gathering it, Leo appeared at the door with a scowl on his face.

"Leo?" Jason whispered in the darkness. "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be standing guard!"

As Leo came closer it was evident that General Percy Jackson was standing behind him with a sword at his back. A few lit torches revealed a small amount of soldiers flanking Percy, and there was no doubt there were more down the hall. Percy had a neutral look on his face, as though he was struggling with it, the thought of arresting his childhood friend.

"Everybody outside." His voice was plain, but it held such an authority that made Piper and the others do as told.

They all stood to walk out as Piper swallowed and looked at Jason, and he returned her stare, before looking back at Percy. Jason stood and walked over to his old friend in an attempt to reason with him.

"Percy, don't do this." He said to his friend.

"You know as well as I do, Jason, that I am bound by oath to serve Jupiter, and that comes before everything."

And that was that. Percy motioned with his sword, "Jason. Your sword. All your swords."

They all walked forward in a line, Malcolm and Nico giving up their swords as Will gave both his bow and his sword. Piper was last and just as she was about to reach up her tunic and give up Katropis, Jason stepped in front of her.

"She doesn't have one, Percy."

Percy looked at his friend suspiciously, but he figured Jason wouldn't lie to him, especially about something so seriously. He nodded to Jason and shot out an order to bring the things they had attempted to steal in order to check everything was there. The six were led outside the servant's entrance into the cool night, and forced to their knees. The damp grass froze Piper's shins as her breath fogged in the air. Percy drew his sword and put it behind Piper's neck, and he spoke to her.

"You once introduced yourself to me as an honorable man, and I still believe that. I'm sorry for what I'm about to do."

She spoke back to him. "Me too."

She drew the dagger from her thigh, slightly cutting herself as she did so. She circled around Percy's backside, almost rolling over him. Her weight forced him to his knees, until she hefted him back up. She held the dagger tight at his neck and he gripped her wrist, trying to get her to release her death grip. Percy's soldiers drew their swords, but Piper Stared threateningly at them.

"Back off!" She yelled.

They were in a stand-off when one soldier stepped forward. "Or what?" He asked her, his grip on his weapon not loosening.

She dug her knife into Percy's neck. "I'll kill him."

"You wouldn't dare."

"Why don't you go ask Luke?"

It pained her to say it, but she kept a hardened look on her face and the soldiers went quiet. The soldier ran his tongue along the back of his teeth, and sheathed his sword, motioning the others to do the same.

"Let them go." He looked at the other soldiers. "Stand down, men, we can't loose another general."

"Stand up, guys." Piper looked to her friends. "Get the bags and the weapons; we're going."

Jason was the first to make a motion towards the bags, throwing some to the others, who caught it with ease. After they reclaimed their weapons, they each jogged behind Piper, who's grip on Percy never loosened, and with a slight gleam in her eye, she dragged him off into the night, the others hot on her tail.

* * *

They led him into the forest blindfolded.

Nico had ripped a piece of cloth from the sacks, and insisted they tie it around Percy's eyes to keep him from knowing the true location of their camp and the prisoners, claiming it was too risky. As soon as they reached the edge of the camp, Jason removed the blindfold from him.

"Was that necessary?" Percy asked, slightly irritated.

"It was his idea." Jason pointed to Nico.

"It's better you don't know where our camp is. I'd be a fool to say it isn't risky bringing you here." Nico defended himself.

As Percy brushed himself off, he looked around the camp. He saw the prisoners, some of whom he helped capture, sitting in groups huddling together to get warm. Their thighs were as thin as his biceps, and their cheeks were sunken in. His eyes widened at them, and as the words formed on his lips, Piper was there to answer his question as she snapped her fingers for the others to start distributing their finds.

"What happened to them?"

"Rome." Piper answered. "Rome happened to them."

"What?"

"Do you hear about the prisoners that Jason and I freed from the Colosseum?"

"Yes. Why?"

"You're looking at them. All two hundred of them. They're starving. They're cold. But they're free, which is more than they had before."

"I never knew it was this bad."

"I don't think anybody did, but this is all we can do for them. I'm sorry we raided the palace and kidnap you, but now you see why. They would've died if we hadn't done something."

"How did this happen?"

"Jupiter isn't as great as his subjects think. He's cruel and he has a cold heart, that's why we're against him. Once they regain their strength, we'll do our best to train them and then I don't know what we'll do. Maybe take the rebellion public; we'll free everyone, even those who don't know they're enslaved."

"All right. I'm in."

"What?"

"I'm joining you."

"Why?"

"Because you're right. Jupiter needs to be stopped."

"Wait. What about your oath?" Piper asked her, and Percy looked at her with a crooked grin.

"Screw the oath."

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**Okay so that's about 4,000 words. And yeah, sorry. It got a little dull towards the end, but that happens when I write too much and get bored with it about halfway through, but I hope you liked. We got Jason's past, Percy joined, and we're on our way. **

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR 88 REVIEWS AND ALL YOUR SUPPORT! :)**

**Read and Review**

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**We got fun and games, my Awesome Possums! :oD**


	5. The Argonauts

**Hello, my Awesome Possums, how was your break? Mine was absolutely lovely, I actually got to sleep... :) It was glorious. Thanks so much for 107 reviews! With only four chapters posted, we've already surpassed the 100 review landmark. Thanks for all your support and patience with me. You're going to love where this is going. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson series.**

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Piper stared at her food. It didn't look right.

For the past months, she'd been used to eating dirt. Just dirt. And now, she had cheeses and fruits in front of her, along with heavenly meats. She took small slow bites despite Jason staring at her, curious as to why such a starving person would eat so daintily, but as the other prisoners, including Leo, threw up a large portion of their meal, Piper explained it to her lost friend. None of these people had eaten a decent meal in months, some years, and their stomachs weren't used to such rich foods.

Jason threw up his too, but only because of the smell.

After they had eaten, and poured a bit of river water on the vomit to help lighten the smell, Piper, Leo, Jason, Malcolm, Nico, Will, and Percy had gathered in the pitched tent placed on the edge of camp. Along with the treasure of eatable foods and weapons they had stolen from the palace, they had discovered war tents as well. Well. A war tent. And it served as their war council room. Unfortunately, that still meant everyone had to sleep outside.

Once they had all entered, sealed the tent, and sat down in an organized circle, Nico spoke. "We have to do something. We'll run out of food and medicine before we can train everyone to hunt and heal."

"I know." Jason agreed. "But what can we do?"

"We can keep robbing the palace?" Will suggested.

Leo looked up from his current project of building a model of a logged structure from a few spare twigs he'd found. With three main supporting beams and two stories tall, and mushed berried to act as cement, it would serve as the perfect home for cockroaches. Piper felt like scolding him for wasting perfectly good food, but he looked so pleased with his creation that she didn't have the heart to. She should've, because this was the third time he'd done it; the boy never seemed to be able to sit still.

"No." Leo jutted in. "That's a bad idea. They'll eventually figure us out and capture us."

"We could rob stores around town." Malcolm looked around for approval, though he looked like he didn't really want it.

Jason shook his head. "No. That's stealing form honest people, which is a last resort."

"Then what do you proposer we do, Jason?" Nico asked, as everyone looked to him as a leader.

Jason licked his lips, unsurely. "Piper?"

Piper was slightly disbanded from the meeting, whittling with Katropis in the corner. It seemed as though she was only there because she had to be. Piper was never one for giving orders, she was still only fifteen, and everyone else, with the exception of Leo, was older and had more experience than she did. She had never actually been to a war council, and just assumed that the others would come up with a reasonable plan that she could go along with.

Nevertheless, she glanced up at Jason. "What?"

Jason sighed quietly, knowing she had tuned out every word they said. "What do you think we should do about the food, medicine, and freedom issues?"

Piper looked back down at her whittling. "You already know what I think we should do."

Jason was a silent for a split second. "Yes, but I would prefer that to be a last option."

Percy held out his hands for everyone to slow down. "Wait. What option are we talking about?"

"She wants my father out of the picture." Jason said through gritted teeth.

"Out of the picture?" Will scrunched his eyebrows, before it clicked. "Oh, you mean:" Will drew his finger across his neck while making a rather obvious scratching sound. Jason nodded.

"Well. Why not?" Nico asked. "It would be the easiest way out and then you could take over, Jason. Everything's solved."

"Not quite." Percy shook his head.

Will groaned. "Don't tell me you're against killing Jupiter too."

"No." Percy said, firmly. "If we were to kill Jupiter, he's still got an army of thousands that are still loyal to him, and there's no doubt that he's already got people lined up to take Luke and I's place. Even if he was dead, we'd still be at war—nothing would be solved."

Malcolm leaned in. "Then what do you suggest we do?"

"We find allies." Percy answered, short and simple.

"With who?" Nico rolled his eyes, as if it were the most ridiculous thing he'd ever heard. "No one is going to want to be allied with two hundred untrained, dying soldiers."

"The people that hate Jupiter most."

"Which is?"

Percy opened his mouth to give the answer, but Jason beat him to it. "Greece."

Percy nodded. "Yeah. Greece."

* * *

Piper was eleven when Tristan finally trusted her enough to tell her of her family history.

They were refugees. Greek refugees. Not Roman. That was like living a lie; the country she had so much pride for was not even her own. The sun she had woken up to every morning, it was not the sun she had been born to see. She had been born to view Greece's sunrise and sunset, but she never would.

Even at her age, Piper knew the basics of the rivalry between Greece and Rome. Bloodshed. War. Hatred. Rome had attacked Greece simply because they saw them unfit to rule their own country. Despite having their own culture and intellect influenced by Greeks, Rome invaded and conquered many parts of Rome. The Punic Wars. They were hellish and bloody, sending many people down to Hades.

But Piper's grandparents escaped with their young children to Italy, to Rome. Piper questioned this. It confused her. They would be slaughtered if they'd stayed in Greece, but why run towards their murders? To Piper, despite being too young to understand a majority of it, knew better than to sprint towards an outstretched sword.

_"But Father," Piper had said, "why would you go to the people trying to kill you? That's like running to death."_

_Tristan had chuckled, and wisely said, "ah, but Pipes, what better way to escape the enemy then to run right to them?"_

She supposed she could've guessed that she wasn't really Roman. The way her father would use the Greek names of the gods, instead of the Roman. He'd always told her that he preferred the more ancient ways of life, but that had been a lie too. Now that she thought about it, it had always been clear; there had been so many times when her father would talk about visiting Greece, but the Greeks hated Rome as much as Rome hated Greece. But she had it better off than Jason.

She wasn't even Roman to begin with.

* * *

The next morning after the war meeting was rather hectic.

Malcolm and Will were staying behind to teach the soldiers how to hunt, heal, and fight, so that when war did come Piper and Jason would have an elite core to lead to the front lines. Both were also staying to prevent chaos amongst the new soldiers. Piper swallowed as she agreed to have everyone trained in every way possible; she knew for a fact that the youngest present was no more than eight.

During the meeting the group had decided on which cities to sail to, and which allies to make. Athens, Argos, and Sicyon to name a few. In six months' time, they'd agreed to meet up in Sparta, where hopefully they'll have made allies. Sparta was the most prominent war city in Greece, and they'd need its assistance in the war against Jupiter.

After a few quiet goodbyes, a hug from Malcolm and Will to Piper while the others received handshakes. The group of Piper, Jason, Leo, Percy, and Nico were ready to make the ten mile journey to the coast where they'd steal a ship and sail their way to Greece. With sun barely on the rise, Piper hoped they'd make it before dark. After a wave to the entire group of prisoners, they were off with the barest of necessities.

After a feet-killing journey and a few quick escape attempts to dodge Roman soldiers, they had made it to the Roman harbor. With multiple dock settings, each having large ships anchored at their ports, the sight was stunning from the high hilled view the five received. The water glistened in the sunlight and Piper didn't understand why, but Percy relished in the cool sea breeze with his eyes closed as if he couldn't have been more at peace.

Piper just assumed the ocean did that to some people. As they walked on the wooden docks, that creaked under their feet, each wondered silently which one to steal. Before anyone else could make a suggestion, Percy cleared his throat and discretely gestured towards a sleek ship docked about five sets away.

It was a penteconter, with a single deck of oars running along both sides of the ship, tucked under the main deck. It was long in length, Piper estimated about sixty feet with a midship mast that would surely propel the ship forward under favorable wind. It was thin width wise though, only about fifteen feet across. Unlike many of the other ships in the bay, this one had a full deck for surveying the land, a very unusual feature amongst these types of vessels. With polished wood and small size, it was built for speed; it was most likely the fastest ship present.

Piper looked to Percy like he was crazy. There was no way they'd be able to row all fifty oars present, but Percy merely rolled his eyes and gestured back to the ship. It's oars weren't deployed, instead they had been lifted into the hull of the ship. If they could keep the oars inside, and merely use the wind to propel them forward, then all would be well. Piper thanked the gods above for the particularly windy day.

Piper got the attention of the others, and pointed towards the ship. They nodded, and begin to walk towards the ship. There was a long wooden board used to walk up to the ship, but using it would be too obvious and they would be discovered before they had come up with a plan to overtake a crew of nearly seventy men. There was a thick piece of rope connected to the ship and to the dock to prevent it from blowing away.

Percy went first. He encircled his legs and arms around the rope, and began crawling his way up onto the ship. The others copied his actions, but only Piper wondered how he had known to do such a thing and where he had learned it. Once they had boarded the ship, they hid behind storage barrels, glancing over it unnoticeably to make sure they had remained unseen. Jason sliced his sword against the rope, and they begin to drift out to sea. The crew hadn't noticed, which Piper praised the gods for, so they crouched down and began formulating a plan.

"How are we going to do this?" Jason looked around at everyone.

Piper shrugged. "Like this." She stood, giving a little hop to her step to where she'd make enough noise to make everyone stop their work and look at her. She walked out from behind the barrels. "All right, gentlemen, we're stealing your ship." The others stood along with her, Jason making a grab at her to pull her back.

A man, who's clothing revealed him to be a captain, laughed. "There are sixty-five of us, and five of you. You couldn't take this ship if you tried."

"Really?" Piper asked with a hint of humor in her voice. She turned to her group, pointing to each one as she introduced them. "We have an ex-gladiator, an escaped tribute of the Colosseum, the highest general of the Romen army, the prince of Rome, and me."

The captain swallowed at such a threatening group, but refused to release her gaze. "And who are you?" Piper drew her dagger quicker than she ever had before and pressed it to his neck.

"I'm Pericles." She growled. "Now get off my ship."

He was the first to throw himself overboard. And with the captain gone, the rest of the crew was gone in about five minutes. Some were a little antsy about it, but one glare from Piper and they sprinted for the side of the boat. Once the entire crew was gone, Leo went to the helm and gripped the giant steering wheel.

Piper chuckled and said jokingly, "oh, so are you the captain now?"

"Yes, I am." Leo said, humor completely gone from his voice. "I am the only one who understands machines like this well enough to pilot it."

Percy started to raise his hand, to express his history as a naval captain before he was promoted to general, but Jason seized his wrist and forced it back down.

"Let him have this one." Jason whispered to his friend.

Leo stood proudly at the helm, the wind dramatically tousling his hair. "You may now address me as the Supreme Commander of the Argo II."

Nico dropped the rope he'd been coiling and looked up at Leo with an eyebrow raised. "That what?"

"The Supreme Commander of the Argo II."

"Not going to happen." Nico muttered under his breath.

"Why the Argo II?" Percy interjected before Leo could comprehend what Nico had said.

"You know," Leo started, "like Jason and the Argonauts? Sailed on the Argo?"

"He was Greek." Jason scrunched his eyebrows. "And an asshole."

"So?" Leo prolonged his syllables, before returning to a normal voice. "It's all still rather fitting; the name, the ship, the quest—"

"Yeah, but didn't all the Argonauts die at se—"

"Doesn't matter." Leo said, quickly and firmly. "The Argo II it is."

"It still doesn't make sen—" Piper started to say, but Jason shushed her with a hand on her shoulder.

"I like the name." He said rather loudly.

Piper looked to her friend, to see how happy he was with the name. "Fine." She agreed before turning to Jason. "Let's go below deck and check for decent maps."

After a few brief minutes of searching the lower deck, including the captain's chambers, they'd found a map of lower Europe that displayed both Italy and Greece in great detail. However, before Jason could catch a good long look at it, Piper had snatched it up in excitement and ran above deck with it and shoved it at Leo.

"Set course for the South; we must travel down the stretch of Italy before we can sail for Greece. Then travel east and onto Greece." Leo nodded and did as told without question.

Jason finally caught up to Piper at the front of the ship, and grabbed her arm, forcing her to look at him. "Where are we going?" He demanded. She looked out onto the open horizon with a smile.

"Athens."

* * *

**So, three guesses as to who we find in Athens. I'll be the first to admit it's Annabeth. I don't know what, but every single "Ancient Greece" story has her living in Athens, so yeah it's a little obvious. However, you don't know what'll happen there. As they say, "when in Athens." ... Actually I think it's "when in Rome" but you know, same thing. **

**Sorry it got a little rushed and vague at the end, I was in a bit of a hurry to write this chapter. So it's only, like, 2,800 words. Meh. Oh well. I'll try to make the next one longer. I think it got a little "Pirates of the Caribbean" there for a second. It wasn't intended, but I don't know how anyone could "commandeer" a ship without it being like Pirates of the Caribbean.**

**Sorry for any spelling errors and please, READ AND REVIEW!**

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**Do any of my Awesome Possums, by chance, have a jar of dirt? :oD**


	6. When in Athens

**Woo! I am back with numero seis (showing off a bit of my Spanish there for you). Thanks so much for all your love, patience, and support with this story! And for 126 reviews! Especially with only five chapters out, I'd say that's pretty good. And we're up to 490 on Roman! **

**Disclaimer: I do not down the Percy Jackson series.**

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Piper had learned of Nico's seasickness all to soon.

The boy couldn't consume anything—not even water—without immediately hurling it up over the side of the Argo II. Piper had wished Will had come along, and worked some miracle seasickness cure on Nico, but he'd stayed behind to treat nearly two hundred dying prisoners. Piper knew it was selfish to want Will here instead of helping the freed tributes, but if she had to hear Nico heaving up his dinner one more time...

And when Percy quietly stepped up on the third day at sea with a cup of ginger tea that automatically cured Nico, Piper felt like punching him for not coming sooner. He'd explained that he'd come across the tea the first day while taking inventory of the ship's goods and remembered the old remedy from his days as a naval captain, but he'd gotten distracted, by what he couldn't remember, and had forgotten about it.

Piper's room had been next to Nico's, and she'd heard him vomiting nearly all hours of the night out his porthole window. It'd nearly caused her to toss up whatever she had left in her stomach as well. Unfortunately, they were aboard the ship for three weeks, during which time, their ginger tea supply had depleted. The drink had already been scarce as they'd eventually learned it had only been for the captain, who'd had an unhealthy obsession with it, and with Nico drinking it with every meal and most times in between, they were out within the week.

And it was back to sleepless nights listening to Nico throw up for Piper. She'd already thought to switch rooms, but there were no other chambers besides the lowest deck where the lowest of the crew slept and that would've been worse for the sure earful she'd receive of the vomit splashing into the ocean. She could've bunked with someone, but the only room that had such options was Jason's and she'd flat out refused that.

With bags under her eyes and a lack of ginger tea, Piper celebrated when they pulled into the Athenian port. It was crowded, as most popular ports were, with merchandise being traded and goods being loaded onto cargo ships. It was just the kind of hustle-and-bustle that Piper needed to take her mind off of such an unpleasant trip.

Once they had gotten off the ship, Piper went to try to find out how to tie the ship to port. Despite Leo having dropped an anchor and insisting it was fine, Piper wasn't so sure. She scrunched her eyebrows at the complicated knot, and Percy move forward, taking the ropes from her hands. She looked at him curiously, but he merely gestured her forward, saying he had it covered and with his experience at sea, Piper trusted him.

As the group began to walk through the streets, they obviously stood out. The clothing style was different in Athens than it had been in Rome. Women freely walked the streets adorning _chitons, himations, _and _peplos_, many reaching full length and some stopping just above their knees. They were colorful shades of reds, blues, greens, and oranges. Some went for a classic white or gray, but each were smiling and talking amongst themselves as if there was nothing wrong in the world.

Piper began to love Athens, such bright colors, but never purple. She wondered why, but it soon left her mind as she focused more on the people rather than the clothing they wore. Each engaged in intelligent conversations, many carried parchments and pieces of pottery about with them, proving the rumors Piper had heard of Athens' superior knowledge. She saw few beggars in the streets, which was a long stretch from Rome, where they gathered in herds.

It was a short three mile journey through the main city before the group stood before the grand palace of Athens in awe. It was much like that of Rome's, rich in architecture and in power. It spread across a large amount of land with an infinite amount of plant life that was perfectly attuned to the building itself. The silver marble it was carved of was majestic as it shone in the sunlight, nearly blinding Piper.

With portraits of great owls, the chosen animal of their patron goddess: Athena, swooping towards rulers of the past, carrying laurels of victory and messages from the gods, it was nothing like the horror of the eagles Piper had seen depicted in similar marble in Rome. The one thing that truly worried Piper about the palace was its gates. Because steel-plated iron bars and a frontline of royal guards standing at ready, the palace was a war fortress.

In other words, impossible to get into.

It wasn't like they were going to break in, but it would be quite difficult to have an audience with a king without an invitation or a six-month notice. And with none of them currently having a meaningful title to their names, it would be even more difficult. But even if Jason or Percy, or even Nico for that matter, still had their titles, they would have never admitted it. That would've been suicide. Out of all of the cities in Greece that Rome had wronged, Athens held one of the bigger grudges.

"So." Nico started, with just a hint of awkwardness in his voice. "Do we just walk right up the front steps and knock on the door?" He said it with a smidge of sarcasm, as if he considered everyone a fool for not thinking of this earlier, but to be honest, the boy had just spent nearly three weeks seasick. He had an excuse to be sour.

"I don't know." Leo said, though he was least likely to be the intended answerer of Nico's question. "Jason?"

They all looked to him. If anyone should know, it would be the ex-prince, but he shook his head. "Don't look at me. No one ever visited us uninvited."

"Then I guess we have no other option." Piper said, walking towards the front gates.

The guards stood shoulder-to-shoulder, as if they were a indestructible human wall, prepared to take a knife for their king. When they stopped at the gates, the guards didn't move to let them through or to ward them off. They stood there, unblinking, but each had a permanent grip on their sword hilts.

"Uh. Hello?" Piper took a small step forward and it was the end of the world.

Each drew their swords and pointed it at Piper, causing her to raise a surprised eyebrow. Their muscles were tensed, as if ready to stab her or anyone else that even dared to breathe. Piper's eyes were glued to the sharpened weapons, and thought to disarm each of them, but she realized that her skills were equally matched here. Not only were these warriors more skilled than she, but they were also born and breed in a city of strategic geniuses. She didn't stand a chance.

"Halt." The guard in the center, who was the clear leader of the troupe, spoke emotionlessly. "No one enters without a formal invitation."

"Please sir." Jason stepped forward and all the swords were suddenly directed at him, though he pretended not to notice. "My name is Jason. I am the prince of Rome." Each sword seemed to draw closer to him. "Or at least I used to be. We need an audience with your ruler. It is crucial."

"And what could be so crucial as to request an immediate council?" The guard ask, just as emotionless as ever.

Jason stepped forward to answer, but Piper beat him to it. "The possibility of war." She paused. "With Rome."

The guard's eyes widened, dropping the emotionless masquerade he previous possessed. He sheathed his sword, with his troupe following in his example. "Open the gates!" He yelled out.

It took a few moments for whatever gatekeeper they had to realize what the guard had ordered; Piper guessed they didn't get visitors often, unplanned or otherwise. With a slight creak, the gates slowly opened as each guard moved slowly to their knees. Each bowed before the group of five in respect, as to what reason Piper did not know. Percy stepped forward and placed his hand on Piper's shoulder.

"Thank you." He said to the guards. "We promise our audience with your ruler will be quick."

As the others traveled ahead, the lead guard had risen and quickly grabbed Percy's arm to stop him from moving any further. "Please brave sir." The guard appeared desperate. "Try not to anger her."

Percy nodded mindlessly, adrenaline blurring his senses. The guard released his arm, allowing him to jog to catch up to his friends. As they made their way up the stone stairs to the front entrance of the palace, where the guards stationed there opened the grand doorway inside, it took Percy the entire journey into the palace to realize just what the guard had said.

_Her?_

* * *

Two maids, formally dressed in full length white _chitons_, lead them into the throne room where they were to have their audience.

When they arrived, a tall woman was already seated upon the throne. She was surrounded by two men, also dressed in white, with a number of documents in her hands. She glanced up at the newcomers and raised an eyebrow. She shoved the parchments back towards the two men and waved them and the two maids off. She straightened in her chair, allowing her regal silver _peplos _to fall naturally against her tanned skin.

She looked at them with the calculating gray eyes that Piper had only heard about in stories from her father about the Greek goddess of wisdom, Athena. She couldn't have been more than nineteen, quite near Percy's age, but she gazed upon them in such a matter that it appeared as though she was thinking of ways to murder each of them without anyone learning of it. Her blonde curls fell loosely over her shoulders, as her stare made all five increasingly uncomfortable. Finally she shook her head, as if coming out of a trance and pursed her lips as if she were annoyed.

"What is the meaning of this?" Her voice boomed throughout the room, as if she had been trained to speak with a presence. "There are no audiences scheduled for this day."

"Please, Milady," Jason wrung his hands before gesturing out towards her, "we must speak with your husbands, it is urgent."

"My husband?" She scrunched her eyebrows, but remained unfazed. "If it is so urgent, why not speak with me?"

"Milady, please." Jason was nearly pleading. "I beg of you, we must speak with the king, not his—"

Percy walked towards the throne, pushing Jason out of the way midsentence. He kneeled with one-knee at her feet and bowed his head. "Please, my queen, we request an audience with you. It concerns the possibility of war with Rome."

She visibly stiffened. "Very well. You and you alone may speak. Arise, stranger, and tell your tale."

Percy stood. "My name is Perseus, and I am the former high general of the Roman armies. This is Jason," Percy gestured to the prince, who waved rather embarrassedly at the queen, "he is the former prince of Rome. Nico, a former gladiator of the Colosseum. Piper and Leo, who both have escaped the death of the Colosseum." As he introduced each member of their party, each gave a respectful nod and a small smile, with the exception of Nico, who never smiled.

The queen raised an eyebrow. "It provides me with great satisfaction to see a woman's presence in the midst of such a group." She didn't bring up the fact that women weren't allowed in the Colosseum. "I applaud you, Piper of Rome." Though she made no motion to do so, before turning back to Percy. "You may continue, Perseus."

He nodded merely once. "Piper had greatly angered Jupiter, the emperor of Rome, during her undefeated time in the Colosseum until the day she was revealed as a deceitful woman by Jason. She had shamed and embarrassed Jupiter multiple times; most recently by escaping her own execution with the assistance of Jason and freeing the remaining prisoners, including Leo.

"However, Jupiter merely replaced all of them and fed them to lions. Milady, this must stop. The tyranny that is Jupiter must be vanquished before he destroys Rome, its people, and its colonies."

"Stop." She ordered, raising a defiant hand. "You came to discuss with me _declaring _war on Jupiter? He is not planning to declare war on Athens?"

"Well, no, Milady, but—"

"Then pray tell Perseus, why would I endanger my soldiers and my city to fight your unnecessary battle?"

"Milady, please." Percy tried to reason with her. "Thousands of people had already died—good innocent people who had lives, who had families. And a thousand more meet their fate as we speak. Do you not weep for them as we do? Jupiter steals people in the night from Greek colonies on Roman soil!

"Some Athenian refugees! Your people are being harmed! Your people are being killed! So please." Percy was breathing hard with desperation. "Do something."

Her stare merely hardened. "Do not order me, Perseus," her voice contained a similar quality the guard's earlier—blank of all emotion," I am ruler of Athens and I shall make its decisions." Percy bowed his head hopelessly. "However." he looked up at her. "I will consider it."

His smiled widened before he dropped to his knee once more and bowed, the others copying his actions. "Thank you, Milady!"

She rose from her throne. "Off your knees." She ordered, a slight mirth in her eyes. "It is late; I shall have rooms prepared for you at once. If you will follow my servants..." she gestured and a handful of servants rushed into the room, each moving towards one of the five. As they began to leave, she spoke once more, her hands folded behind her back. "I except all of you in the war room by tomorrow's noon. I shall summon our best strategists to come up with a plan."

Percy was last to leave and had gestured for his guide to wait for him outside the throne room. He bowed to the queen one last time. "Thank you, Milady." He began to move for the exit, but she spoke up.

"Annabeth."

"What?" He turned back to her.

"My name." She clarified. "It's Annabeth."

He smiled. "Percy."

"What?"

"My name. It's Percy." He chuckled. "Perseus makes me sound like an aged man."

"Very well." She nodded, a small smile creeping on her lips. "Good night. Percy." And she left him alone in the room, as he stared after her.

"Good night." He whispered to the empty room. "Annabeth."

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**So yeah. That was pretty short, even though I promised to make this one longer. But who cares? We got us some Percabeth! Oh yeah! How about them apples? Sorry for any spelling or grammar errors, I don't go back and read through these chapters even though I should. So since this one was so short, I think I'll give some writer's advice. **

**Writer's Advice: Flaws**

**Face it. Everyone's got to have flaws. And specifically in the Percy Jackson series, they had fatal flaws. So use that for your character, what personality trait or physical trait weakens them? What is their fatal flaw? It is especially important to do this for OCs, because let's face it, we all base our OCs slightly off ourselves. Particularly inexperienced writers. **

**If someone does a story with an OC as a main character, often times, the main character is what people on fanfiction called: Mary Sue. (At least I think so). A Mary Sue is perfect. Too perfect. And that makes them unlikable. Common traits of a Mary Sue is great power, great wealth, great appearance, great popularity, and a great personality. There is absolutely nothing wrong with them. **

**And basically my theory behind Mary Sues are authors writing themselves with huge personifications that they may be insecure about. Whether it be about how beautiful a character is or how strong they are, often times it's about how a person feels about themselves. And its not bad to base a character off yourself, and in fact, I think it's a smart thing to do, because you know yourself better than any character you could ever create. **

**Unfortunately, we like to imagine ourselves as popular, pretty, powerful, and talented. And let's face another thing, there is some book character, some movie character, some television character, some celebrity that we are hopelessly in love with. I'll tell you right now. Nico di Angelo (Since fourth grade and it sucks because now I know he's gay). Peter Parker (The Amazing Spiderman). Oliver Queen (Arrow). Andrew Garfield or Stephen Amell.**

**And when we write, we can place ourselves with this characters and marry them and make out with them as often as we want, but we get to caught up in that. So my advice to dealing with flaws and Mary Sues is to take a step back when you're writing in an OC and ask yourself, does this person have drawbacks? Can they not control their amazing powers? Are they put under pressure of their popularity? Do they dislike their riches? **

**You can still give them everything you've ever wanted to be, but there always has to be some sort of catch. So maybe they're beautiful, but because of this it's hard for them to maintain a relationship because everyone only wants them for their looks. It's things like that show vulnerability in a character, that makes it more relatable. Because, let'****s face one last thing, if your character is too perfect, your readers can't connect with them and then you have a suckish story. **

**Hope this helps! If you have any questions for me as an author or any questions for you as an author, don't be afraid to PM or write it in your review!**

**READ AND REVIEW!**

* * *

**You guys are such Awesome Possums! :oD**


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